


When Smiles are Fleeting

by heavensverdict



Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: Canon Related, Fluff and Angst, Kissing, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-31
Updated: 2016-05-31
Packaged: 2018-07-11 06:37:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply, Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,861
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7033954
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heavensverdict/pseuds/heavensverdict
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mika Kagehira, a simple boy from Kansai, is accepted into Yumenosaki Academy's idol course. There, he meets Shu Itsuki and joins the unit Valkyrie.</p><p>Also there, he meets Nazuna Nito. Unwittingly, he falls in love.</p>
            </blockquote>





	When Smiles are Fleeting

**Author's Note:**

> sweats. ok. i...i don't know what i'm doing. i really want to get back into fic writing, so i'm trying my best, and i think a lot of people...liked my...ritsumao fic... and thank you all so much!! i'm really shy when it comes to my writing but it's really nice to see people like it, and i get incredibly embarrassed looking at comments- but i read them all. thank you so much. 
> 
> this fic is longer than what i've been writing for a while so i really wanted to publish it lol. i referenced [doublerainbow82](http://doublerainbow82.livejournal.com)'s translations for mika and shu's characters and mika's way of talking, i hope...they're accurate, otl. i'm really afraid of how i characterized them and nazuna, especially nazuna, but i hope it's okay?? mika is such a sweetheart. i think i also had a bit of a problem with the tenses, but that's pretty minor i think? hopefully it sounds right. nazumika is a ship that's grown to be one of my otps, they're really sweet together and it pains me how mika has complicated feelings towards him. valkyrie pains me in general, actually. oh i made the beginning part up since there's not much backstory to mika's background except that he's from kansai and how he and shu met, so um yeah? it's supposed to relate to canon but i had some liberty. i feel like my writing got weird in this too...hopefully...not...
> 
> i'm sorry for rambling so much otl, but if you do read this- thank you, again. i hope i can influence a bit and make you like nazumika too? um. i couldn't think of a good summary either. or title. why is life so hard. I'M RAMBLING SO MUCH CHRIST, ANYWAYS, thank you for clicking! (/////)

Going to Tokyo to pursue his idol career was one of the scariest decisions Mika Kagehira had ever made in his life. He didn’t know what the future would hold, nor did he know if he even would be successful but when he saw the advertisement for Yumenosaki Academy, he knew that it was where he wanted to be. 

He’d always been praised for having a lovely voice back in his hometown, and his family always gushed about his pretty face; though he did not enjoy the gazes he got from strangers, especially concerning his eyes, he thought they would at least be useful assets to being an idol. They’d distinguish him from the crowd and make him unique, so with all these qualities the boy thought he truly had a chance to make it far.

Mika had always been able to easily adapt to new situations and his parents supported his dream as best as they could. Thus after he’d been accepted into the idol course, it was decided he would commute from his home in Kansai. Hours upon hours were spent riding on the train- but even for him, a boy who’d grown up in the country and who had many childhood memories of long days in the sun and working on his family’s farm, it grew to be quite exhausting.

Which is why he will eternally be grateful for his Mentor, Shu Itsuki, and the opportunities he gave to his blooming idol career.

Being all alone as a first year from another district, having a rather shy personality and being accepted into such a prestigious academy as Yumenosaki, it was hard not to feel intimidated by the ones around him. His first days were spent lonely and almost regretting his decision, moments sniffling on the train back home and wondering if he’d been blinded by delusions of grandeur- so he’d never forget the day that the pink-haired second year reached out to him and made him feel a bit more welcome.

“You call that…sewing? That poor doll looks beat up and ruined, and your clumsy mending does not help,” was the snide first remark that Shu had said to him. Normally, someone would get worked up. In retrospect, Mika knew it was quite mean, but he also knew the stranger was telling the truth.

Mika liked sewing, but his mother hadn’t been able to teach him much. He’d really only mended old dolls, stuffed toys that started wearing out and even then not very well. He was sitting on a bench near the academy’s garden, fixing a doll for one of the children in his town that he’d watch every once in a while. He was from a small, tight-knit town where everyone knew each other, and Himi-chan had grown extremely upset when one of the neighborhood boys had ripped her arm apart. Mika comforted girl when she ran crying to him, and promised to fix it for her though he wasn’t sure if he really could.

Eventually, he’d learn that Mentor had trouble speaking to others. He’d grow to know that he didn’t mean to be so rude- that’s just the way he was and how he talked to people. 

He was also the first person who ever reached out to him in the academy, and after getting to know him and knowing how much Shu hated crowds and strangers, he feels incredibly lucky that he had gotten this chance.

“Erm- ‘xcuse me?” Mika said, shocked that a complete stranger would say something like this to him. The pink-haired teenager only wrinkled his nose in disgust.

“Your stitches are quite uneven, it’s appalling to watch. Give me this atrocity right now,” he commanded, and still stunned from a stranger saying such rude words to him, Mika let him take the doll from his hands. The shock soon turned into admiration as he swiftly and precisely fixed Himi-chan’s doll until it looked almost as good as new.

“There, there. See what a professional can do?” the stranger said rather haughtily, but such marvelous handiwork deserved it, he supposed.

“I- Thank ya! Looks great!” Mika exclaimed as he was handed the doll, a blush rising in his cheeks, growing embarrassed of his accent, “ ’m not all that good at sewin’, but a girl I play with got real upset- so-”

“Save these trivialities for someone else, I’m not interested in such inane details,” he waved him off, “However, what I am interested in- I have heard your singing voice while passing by your classroom. Though it still sounds shaky and awkward, with some fine tuning I’m sure it will become acceptable enough. Tell me, first year, has anyone asked for you to join their group yet?”

The boy with different colored eyes was again dumbfounded by this stranger’s bluntness. He knew no bounds, did not sugarcoat and got straight to the point. He supposed fixing his doll was just an ulterior motive for this question.

But he was headstrong, knew what he wanted, and Mika admired that in a person.

“N-No, actually, ya-you’re the first,” he stuttered, unable to believe what was happening. The stranger put a hand to his chin and smirked.

“Tres bien. Very well, I will recruit you for mine. Under my jurisdiction, you will become a fine doll and I the Mentor, puppetmaster if you will. I will teach you everything I can, from improving your ugly sewing to helping you tune your fine voice. What a coincidence it was to find you in the garden, perhaps it was fate, no?”

It was all so fast and sudden, definitely not the most conventional meeting. Telling this story in the future would weird some people out and paint the boy to be too trusting and naive. But it’d gotten him into a unit, a unit that would become one of the best in Yumenosaki- so Mika couldn't complain, right?

Mika grew attached to Shu very quickly. He’d soon tell him about his commuting situation, and Shu would invite him to live in his home out of convenience. Of course, he’d gratefully accept, and aim to be a perfect marionette- everything to make his Mentor proud, everything to make them the best, everything for Valkyrie's impact to touch the members of the academy.

However, the most important result of this encounter was that his new teacher- his Mentor- would introduce him to Nazuna Nito.

And Nazuna Nito- rather, as he’d grow to call him, Nazuna-nii- was someone he would never, ever forget, no matter how hard he tried.

 

* * *

 

 

Mika meets Nazuna the next day, officially attending as the new member of the unit 'Valkyrie’. He’s nervous, shaky, and swears he can feel Shu staring down at him with a glare, but he’s also very excited for what’s to come.

Finally, it is a beginning step to the exciting idol life of Yumenosaki, one he dreamed about when he first saw the ad for the school.

Nazuna Nito is a second year, one year older than him, but a lot shorter than him. He has round, doe-like eyes, soft-looking blonde hair, and lithe, delicate features that remind him of porcelain. Mika wonders if this is the result of Shu’s training, if he can become like this- what Shu described as a 'perfect doll’. Though he hasn’t seen much, from how joyously and overly affectionately his elder has complimented this boy, it seems that Nazuna is obedient, talented and what he dubs as his 'masterpiece’.

“Perhaps you will never measure up to my masterpiece, but it is an honor to even be compared,” is what he said precisely, so Mika feels pressure and wants to make a good first impression.

“H…Hello! I’m Mika Kagehira, and I’m a first year! Um… ’m from Kansai, so I prolly have a real funny way of talking, but I can sing just fine and I look forward to Itsu-Mentor teaching me to be even better. ’t’s nice to meet you, I hope we can make this unit, Valkyrie, the best it can be!” He blurts out, and afterwards regrets it immediately. Whenever he was nervous, his mouth ran a mile a minute. His Mentor rolls his eyes, muttering under his breath about how his introduction is way too long, but Nazuna doesn’t seem to mind.

He’s quiet, but he smiles, and for a moment Mika is taken by how beautiful a sight can be. He blinks before he realizes that Nazuna has reached out his hand, and awkwardly he mimics the gesture and shakes it.

He’s a bit worried that he’s freaked him out since he hasn’t said a word but Mentor doesn't seem to notice. The pink-haired second year throws his hands in the air exasperatedly, ready to begin their session.

“Yes, yes, introductions, good for you. Now, let us get started perhaps? I don’t know why people bother with such insignificant gestures-”

Suddenly, they hear a knock on the door and Shu makes out a hand. A figure with black hair creaks the door open, and motions for him to come outside.

He huffs and follows. “Excuse me for a moment.”

When Mentor leaves, Mika is left alone with his 'beautiful creation’. He feels self-conscious next to the Nazuna that has been praised so much, and fumbles with his hands, unknowing of what to say or if to say anything at all when he hears a soft sound.

“Um…It’s…It’s nice to meet you,” the blonde mumbles, looking down at his feet with a troubled expression on his face. His voice is very quiet and strained, but his companion thinks that it’s a miracle that he spoke at all.

“You talked!” Mika’s eyes brighten, but then he realizes the audacity of what he’s said and embarrassedly covers his mouth. Nazuna doesn’t seem to mind, though; his expression shifts to something slightly more amused, and Mika sighs in relief, “Ah, sorry- It’s just that, ya didn’t before, so I 's worried I said too much. I always run my mouth, you’ll have to 'xcuse me, ’s a nervous habit…”

“Ah, it’s fine, really. I’m sorry I didn’t talk, actually, that’s the reason why you felt uncomfortable after all,” Nazuna apologizes, looking ashamed again, “It’s just…Mentor doesn’t like when I talk, so, I try not to.”

The first year’s eyes grow wide. “Eh? Why wouldn’t he?”

The blonde sighs wistfully. “He doesn’t like my lisp. And I get really nervous sometimes, so I stutter, which also annoys him.”

It sounds quite bad, actually, and for a brief moment Mika wonders if this really was a good opportunity, to meet someone so disagreeable… He’d always been told he was too trusting and his parents were worried about him going off to the city, but Nazuna isn’t done and doesn’t seem to want to paint his fellow unit member in such a bad light.

“He can be quite difficult, but he wants everything to be perfect. He’s hard to understand but he means well. His ways are rather extreme, but he tries hard to take us to the top, and he hasn’t failed us yet. So, I do it out of my own will too. I want what’s best for us, and if he says so, I won’t talk.”

It still sounds so far-fetched, and  _way_  too extreme, but Mika also finds the reason plausible. As long as Nazuna did it of his own accord, he thinks it’s okay.

“I… guess I understand why then. But I like your voice, Nito-san. ’s cute, and suits ya.”

At that, Nazuna’s cheeks turn rosy. Mika continues, “I, erm, talk in such country bumpkin way. Compared to all ya city folk, I feel a little insecure yanno… Don’t think Mentor would want me to talk either, but I can’t help runnin’ my mouth a lot of the time. If he asks me, I couldn’t do it, yeah?”

“I think your voice suits you too, though, Kagehira,” it’s Mika’s turn to blush at Nazuna's compliment, “Having an accent isn’t bad, you know. It shows where you’re from, and you should be proud.”

“T…Thank you, yanno, you're right. I love my home town, the people 've grown up with, 'm proud of where 'm from,” Mika messes with the ends of his sleeves, wondering if he's bragging too much, “I-If it’s alright, when ’s just the two of us, can we talk like this again?”

The second year smiles, one that has the power to illuminate an entire room. Mika thinks about all the people who have seen him on stage- if they aren’t completely enticed by that smile, he thinks they don’t deserve to see it. If he watched a Valkyrie performance before joining the academy and saw this wonderful sight, he's sure he would have immediately fallen for it.

“Yeah. I’d like that.”

Their conversation is abruptly put to an end when Shu comes back, mumbling about his friend having to discuss something with him. And thus reality hits again. As expected, Shu is exceptionally strict their first practice. He is picky and demands absolute perfection, repeating lines and steps over and over if they’re not to his liking.

But almost immediately, Mika feels as if he’s already gotten a little better after their first practice. There’s a lot he has to learn, and he is quite aware he's nowhere near perfect. He thinks he will grow to appreciate his Mentor’s methods especially if it guarantees stellar results.

He thinks he will love Valkyrie, and his time at Yumenosaki, and is thankful for that his surprising, unconventional first encounter.

 

* * *

 

 

“So, what kind of things do ya like, Nazuna-nii?” Mika asks one day when they decide to eat lunch together. Their Mentor had more business with a friend. He’d taken to calling his senior by this nickname after the blonde insisted, saying it’d be nice if they could become more familiar. The first year doesn’t mind; he thinks the nickname is rather cute, actually. He is glad that he has an opportunity to get closer to his Mentor's precious Nazuna, and is growing to admire him as a role model.

“Hm?” Nazuna says, mouth stuffed with bread. Graceful and precise as he is in practice, everything outside of it that he does is cute, “I play a lot of mobile games, if that’s what you mean?”

“Really? What kind?”

“Oh, just some silly stuff. Like idol games,” he laughs, a sound that Mika always loves to hear, “You know, being an idol and all, I kinda got into them. Most of them are rhythm games, and they’re really fun.”

“Really? Sounds cool!” the first year pouts, “I still got a crummy ol’ flip phone, yanno, so I can’t download anythin'…”

“Here, let me show you,” Nazuna takes out his phone and sits next to his friend, opening up an idol game with cute girls greeting them. He picks a song in 'master’ mode, and Mika is awed by how fast his fingers go; he can do so much more than just dance well with them, it’s incredible, “Darn- missed one note, no full combo-”

“You’re amazing,” Mika breathes, eyes wide, and Nazuna laughs again.

“Thanks, Mika-chin. What about you, what do you like?”

He smiles at the nickname; he’d gotten used to calling him Nazuna-nii, but Nazuna also made a nickname for him as well. He truly feels like they were on their way to being good friends if they aren’t already. He was afraid that he wouldn’t have made any when he first came to Yumenosaki initially, being so different. But now, he's in a unit, they're actually pretty  _successful_ , and he has two people who have become very important to him in such a short time.

“Ah, ’s kind of embarrassing, but, well… I really like collecting stuffed animals, yanno? They’re real cute, I got a lot of them at home… Doesn’t really help take away from my girly name though. Oh, 'n I love horror movies too. I made a friend in my class, name’s Naru-chan- always on my case about that, doesn’t understand why. Says we should watch one sometime though, haha.”

“Horror movies and stuffed animals? Kind of opposites, don’t you think? But I actually collect stuffed animals too! We’re in high school, I know, but I can’t help it,” Nazuna huffs, pouting at the thought of being considered childish. He wonders if he knows this Naru-chan; it sounds like Arashi Narukami, a member of the unit Knights where Sena and that eccentric king Leo were, “But, that’s nice! I’m glad you’ve made a friend…~ I get worried about you, ya know, you’re kinda shy sometimes.”

“Heh, I got you and Mentor at least, and Naru-chan too,” Mika grins, and Nazuna can’t help but note that his grin reaches his eyes, “Do you like horror movies? Yanno, I wonder what Mentor’d think of 'em… Wonder if he’s the type to get scared easily, huh?”

“Eh, I get scared easily sometimes, it depends,” the second year smirks at the thought of Shu getting frightened, “I bet he is! Mentor always overreacts. We should rope him into watching one some time, yeah?”

“Ya can be devious, Nazuna-nii…” Mika snickers when the blonde flicks a piece of bread at him, “Sounds like a plan!”

Silly, small conversations like this left him feeling giddy and warm. He hopes he can talk to Nazuna-nii like this, forever, forever.

 

* * *

 

 

(Eventually, Shu finds out they talk in their private time. Mika’s never been good at keeping secrets, but this is one he’d tried to desperately keep. 

The moments have become ingrained into his heart, and though he is scared of the consequences when his Mentor finds out, he is more upset about his precious moments with Nazuna-nii being stolen away from him.

He’d never mention it to Mentor, though. He wouldn’t dare. Mentor seems incredibly upset when he finds them laughing together, and he wonders if he felt left out. He feels awful at the thought. He never thought of it like that.

But he doesn’t question it, he doesn’t want Mentor get mad. They betrayed his trust, after all, and Mentor knows what’s best for them.)

 

* * *

 

 

(He tries to fix Nazuna-nii some clothes for his birthday. They could never measure up to Mentor’s ornate costumes, of course, what with their delicate frills and intricate embroidery, but he tries his absolute best and hardest. He’s still clumsy in his needlework, but he thinks he’s improved a little, and Nazuna-nii looks overjoyed at the present so everything is worth it in the end.

_“Mi…. Mikachi….. Th- than…… …. H- happ…..”_

He’s trying hard to strain some words out but Nazuna-nii- he can’t speak. Not anymore. 

After being quiet for so long, it’s incredibly difficult, and though he’s happy that the second year is trying for his sake there’s a certain pain in Mika’s heart. For a moment, Mika wonders if what Mentor says truly, truly is the best for them- but the thought is brushed aside when their Mentor shushes them.)

 

* * *

 

 

Mika can't exactly pinpoint when they started to fall apart. Of course it's when the wretched emperor, Eichi Tenshouin, destroys their unit in a live- but was it before that, too? All of the circumstances that lead to that? Though Eichi definitely was the catalyst to Valkyrie's fall, there has been the tension and events leading to it. Mentor's stubbornness, refusal to change...

But things had changed in a heartbeat. The unit, fine, had become the supreme ruler of the school.

And Nazuna-nii left.

Mentor stopped coming to practice, to school at all actually. He was understandably upset, and many times Mika tried to drag him out of bed since they lived in the same space, but he refused each day and nothing would make him come out of his shell. The now second year can still recall the words that _tyrant_ said to his teacher, “Thank you. For dancing the way I wished.” 

For Yumenosaki's number one puppeteer, that was the finishing blow. It broke his heart, his psyche and in return, their unit was nothing now.

Sure, he had a friend in Naru-chan, but things- he was alone again, right? Just like his first days at the academy.

Nazuna-nii, he thought, would stay in Valkyrie. He was Mentor's most beloved, precious doll after all. At the very least, he should have felt obligated to. His smile had become fleetingly rare, but Shu still considered it the 'most beautiful smile in the world'; and now, it belonged to an entirely other unit. Apparently, he'd heard, the blonde joined a new group full of first years called Ra*bits, ironically as their Mentor. 

He'd heard from Naru-chan, actually, who asked because the model wanted to know if he could fix their uniforms as a favor to one of his younger club mates. He still wasn't very good at sewing, and Naru-chan ended up having to ask a friend from their model agency. But the model, a famed gossip, told him about Nazuna helping the first years out, and Mika felt a sharp pain in his chest at the mention of it.

He remembers all the moments he shared with Nazuna-nii. The laughs, the smiles, the snickers at Mentor when he was overreacting... Mika remembers how supposedly, Valkyrie's happiness was important to him. All to be thrown away.

Was there no chance for them to recover anymore?

All Mika knows is that he definitely, definitely doesn't know what to feel about his Nazuna-nii anymore. Was he even his to begin with? He doesn't know how he'll react when he sees him again.

But of course, fate is cruel, and when Mika travels to the cafeteria to get lunch, Nazuna coincidentally is in the hallway at the same time. 

At the sight of blonde hair, Mika wants to run- but he's been spotted, and there's no way he can avoid him now. Nazuna looks troubled, shifting uncomfortably before approaching him first; his senior might be shorter but Mika has never felt so small in his entire life. 

"Mika-chin... How're things? With Mentor? How's he been doin'?"

"Ya- You're not in Valkyrie anymore, yanno. You don't need to pretend ya care 'bout us." It's a hurtful blow, especially since Nazuna  _cares_ , cares so  _much_ , but he only looks down in response.

" 'Course I do. I'll always care about you guys, please don't say this-"

Mika wishes he could be anywhere else but here. The pain in his chest is back, and he knows that soon he'll definitely start crying if he doesn't go away. But this encounter was bound to happen sooner or later. 

“Nazuna-nii,” his tongue accidentally slips out the fond nickname. Even so, he can't fully hate Nazuna-nii, he’ll always be Nazuna-nii in his heart, “I dunno how I feel about ya right now. Ya-Ya left Valkyrie, ya can't just-”

Against all odds, Nazuna perks up at the mention of his nickname. He still has that, at least. 

“I’m glad you at least can still call me that. You’ll always be free to, alright?” he sighs, still unable to look into Mika's heterochromatic eyes, "I-I know I shouldn't really be talking to you, but no matter what- you and Mentor, you'll always, always be precious-"

"Don't make this...harder than it's gotta be," the second year interrupts the third year, "We really shouldn't be talkin' in the first place, yanno."

"But- we-we were friends, right?" Nazuna's voice is shaky, his stutter and lisp coming out gradually more during this nerve-wracking conversation. It's refreshing. Even if it's not perfect, like Shu wanted them to be, it's distinctly him- his Nazuna-nii, the one he'd grown to love. This is one of the only good things that's coming out of their discussion.

“Y...Yeah. Yeah, we were," Mika scratches the back of his head. Nazuna’s heart drops at the mention of ‘were’; just a week ago, they’d been together, and now he is a part of the past.

Mika’s surprised that no one has passed by them in the halls yet, but very, very thankful. He decides to not fight himself anymore, and says some words he’s been meaning to say, "Um. I shouldn't be sayin' this, but... 'm glad you're talking again, yanno. I’m glad that we can all hear your voice.” 

At this, Nazuna is finally able to look his former comrade in the eyes. “ ’m glad ya don’t have to hide it anymore.”

Mika covers his face at having said those words. Nazuna wavers. “Aren’t you betraying Mentor by saying this?”

“Well- he doesn’t need to know, right?” The second year is lying, he tells Shu  _everything_ , but honestly, it's something he's always wanted to tell him anyways. Nazuna knows this, and smiles- not as brightly as before, but it's still something. Maybe their relationship wasn't completely damaged.

Maybe, in the future, it could be repaired. Not now, definitely not now... But there was hope, right?

Yumenosaki is the school for hopes and dreams to come true. Mika still firmly believes in this.

However, before he knows it, he’s crying. He's really, _really_ thankful that no one is there still. Mika holds his chest, the pain in his heart is just  _unbearable_ , and leans over, head facing down so he doesn't have to look at Nazuna anymore. The blonde makes a startled cry.

“Hey, just 'cuz I’m not in Valkyrie anymore doesn’t mean I don’t love you anymore. I’m…. sorry it has to be like this,” Nazuna tries to comfort, running to Mika's side and supporting his body. There are tears swelling up in his eyes, too,“But I’ll always love Mentor, and I’ll always love you. Alright, Mika-chin?” 

Mika doesn't respond, so Nazuna continues, “For now, I think it’s best if we part ways. But I promise, we’ll all smile happily together again, alright?”

It seems too hopeful, something in the distant future. But it is something to look forward to. They could, some day.

“Really? A promise?” the second year sniffles, and at that moment, Nazuna just how pretty Mika really is. His different colored eyes, a golden hue and blue, are intense and hold a sense of longing similar to his own. His face is soft and kind, and the third year cups his cheek with one hand, the other hand wiping away a tear on the other. 

Mika's head is on level with his. Their faces grow dangerously close, closer, closer- until noses touch, until there is barely any space between their lips, until Nazuna kisses Mika softly, trying to tell him that one day it'll all be okay again.

The moment only lasts for a few brief seconds, before Nazuna jumps and pulls away at what he's done. His face grows red, he's frantic, and Mika wonders how it's possible someone  _could be so adorable._

 _"_ G-Guh! I'm- I'm so sorry Mika-chin! Rweally! God, I don't kn-" His stutter is out of control, he's flailing nervously, and Mika laughs, cupping his face with both hands like his senior did previously. He squishes his cheeks, and he grows from jumpy to pouting, sticking out his tongue.

“ 's a good way to make a promise, yanno,” Mika gushes, and though he was crying minutes before, there's no way he can't smile and feel warm after that moment. He lets go of Nazuna's face, and in return Nazuna smiles his award-winning smile, enough to make an entire crowd speechless. A certain warmth overtakes Mika at the sight. He wishes things could be fixed, right then and there.

What Mika doesn't know is that Nazuna thinks the same thing of his smile- warm, kind,  _radiant._

They'd go back to tension in the air sooner than later, especially concerning Mentor. But a kiss was a kiss, and a promise was a promise, and both took those rather very seriously.

 

* * *

 

 

  
“You…got a kiss from our Nito? You? And not me? Preposterous! Absolutely preposterous!” Shu rambles on and on when Mika tells him of their last encounter when he arrives home. He never kept anything from Mentor, after all, but the kiss is a startling surprise. Shu’s mouth even dropped when Mika mentioned it; if he weren’t so 'stupidly honest’, as Shu had once put it, he probably wouldn’t have believed the news at all.

“Mentor, I-”

“How unbelievably frustrating! After all the countless things I’ve done for him, he chooses to direct his affections on a- a failure like you?”

Normally, Mika takes his Mentor’s words to heart and doesn’t dare to defy. However, he’s a bit annoyed by this since it backhandedly insults Nazuna-nii too, and he knows Shu doesn't mean this at all. He could take insults directed at him, but Nazuna-nii?

Besides, admittedly, he feels a bit smug and wants to brag. Sometimes his Mentor, well... needed to be schooled.

(Did Mentor forget that he loved Nazuna too? …Or, did he love him too much?)

“Yanno, I’m not that much of a failure if I got a kiss from Nazuna-nii… Right?”

Surprisingly, Shu doesn’t seem mad at that comment. He’s rather amused, actually. He huffs and crosses his arms, and Mika grins. “…Hmph. Touché, Kagehira. Touché.”

 


End file.
